Door latch



May 21, 1957 J. FLEMING 2,793,062

DOOR LATCH Filed July 14, 1955 h; Fig. 2 25 3 45 33 mg l l /gumn l a, i: U

2 Joseph Fleming INVENTOR. BY MU,

United States. PatentOfi" 2,793,0 6.? Patented May 21, 1957 DOOR LATCH Joseph Fleming, Shullsburg, Wis. Application July 14, 1955, Serial No. 522,048 1 Claim. (Cl. 292-57) My invention relates to improvements in latches for doors, gates and the like.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a simple form of latch for an outwardly opening door of a barn or other enclosure for cattle or stock and which cannot be unlatched by stock inside the barn or enclosure.

Another object is to provide a latch for the above purpose which is easy to install, durable, not liable to get out of order and adapted for manufacture at a comparatively low cost.

Other and subordinate objects, together with the precise nature of my improvements, will become readily apparent when the following description and claim are read with reference to the drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification, and in which:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view in horizontal section, partly broken away, and shown in plan, of my improved latch applied to a barn door, the latch being shown in latching position;

Figure 2 is a view in vertical section taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view in vertical section, partly in elevation, taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing the latch in unlatching position.

Referring to the drawing by numerals,

embodiment of the invention illustrated nates an outwardly opening door of a barn, or other cattle enclosure, hinged at one edge, as at 3, to one side of a doorway frame 5 for closing against the other door stop side 7 of said frame.

My improved latch comprises a cylindrical latch bolt 9 extending through the door 1 transversely thereof with an inner latching end 11 disposed in the doorway 13 when the door 1 is closed, and an outer end 15 extending outwardly of the outer side of said door 1. The latch bolt 9 is endwise slidable and rotatable in the door 1, for a purpose presently described, and through inside and outside apertured bearing plates 17, 19 set into and secured to the inner and outer sides of the door 1, by screws, as at 21.

A latch pin 23 extends radially from the latch bolt 9 adjacent its inner end 11 and is adapted to be engaged by a keeper plate 25 on the door frame 5 to latch the door 1 closed. The keeper plate 25 is secured in vertical position to the stop side of the door frame 5, within the door way 13, and faces the latch bolt 9, when the door 1 is closed, and is provided with a vertical slot 27 with which the latch pin 23 is adapted to be registered by sliding of the latch bolt 9 from retracted position and in which said pin 23 is engaged by rotation of the latch bolt 9, whereby to latch the door 1 closed.

A transverse outside handle rod 29 is provided on the outer end 15 of the latch bolt 9 for rotating and sliding said bolt from the outer side of the door 1 and which is fixed on said outer end by a sleeve 31 on said rod 29 detachably secured to said end 15 by a setscrew 33.

A transverse inside handle rod 37 is welded, as at 39,

in the preferred therein, 1 desigto the latch bolt 9 between the latch pin 23 and the door 1 for sliding and rotating the latch bolt 9 from the mner side of the door 1.

A coil spring 41 on the latch bolt 9 is interposed between the outside bearing plate 19 and a series of washers 43 interposed on said bolt 9 between said spring 41 and the sleeve 31 and yieldingly urges said latch bolt into a retracted position established by engagement of an ofifset portion 45 of the handle 37 with the inside bearing plate 17.

Referring now to the operation of the latch, to position the same for unlatching the door 1, the latch bolt 9 is rotated clockwise, as viewed in Figure 4, by either handle 29, 37 so that it will slide to the right, as viewed in Figures 1 and 2, into its retracted position by the spring 41 as soon as the latch pin 23 has been rotated out of the slot 27. To position the latch for latching, said latch bolt 9 is advanced relative to the door 1 in opposition to the spring 41 until the latch pin registers, or is opposite, the slot 27, after which it may be rotated counterclockwise, as viewed in Figure 3, to enter the latch pin 23 in the slot 27 so as to engage the keeper plate 25. It will be noted that the tension exerted by the spring 41 may be varied, as may be required, by removing or adding washers 43. Furthermore, the inside handle rod 37 will engage the frame 5 and limit rotation of the latch bolt 9 in a direction for entering the latch pin 23 in the slot 27.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

A latch for releasably retaining a swingable door in closed relation to an opening in an animal retaining enclosure, the opening being defined by a door frame with one side thereof forming a stop for the free edge of the door, said latch comprising an elongated bolt extending through the door in perpendicular relation thereto adjacent the free edge thereof, a bearing plate on each surface of the door slidably and rotatably receiving said bolt, the door frame having a vertical keeper plate disposed parallel to the bolt and having a vertical slot therein, a radial latch pin rigid with said bolt adjacent the inner end thereof, a laterally extending elongated inner handle rigid with said bolt between the .latch pin and the inner surface of the door, a sleeve removably mounted on the bolt exteriorly of the door and in spaced relation thereto, a laterally extending elongated outer handle rigid with the sleeve, a coil spring encircling: said bolt with one end of the spring engaging the outer bearing plate on the door, a plurality of spacers disposed between the other end of the spring and the inner end of the sleeve whereby the spring may be adjustably tensioned thus urging the lock bolt outwardly of the door, said inner handle having an outer portion offset away from the inner surface of the door forming a hand. grip and an inner portion for engaging the bearing plate on the inner surface of the door, said spring urging the inner portion of the innerhandle against the inner bearing plate when in unlatched condition, the distance between the inner handle and pin being less than the distance between the inner bearing plate on the door and the adjacent edge of the vertical slot in the keeper plate thus necessitating inward sliding movement of the bolt for aligning the pin with the slot before the bolt can be rotated about its longitudinal axis for swinging the pin into the slot thus latching the door in closed position, said inner handle be- 9 a ing spaced substantially 90 circumferentially from said pin whereby the free end of the inner handle will be disposed adjacent the interior of the door frame below the keeper plate when the pin is fully engaged with the slot in the keeper plate for limiting the rotation of the bolt in one direction and orientating the pin in substantially perpendicular relation to the keeper plate, said spring resiliently urging the pin into frictional engagement with the inner edge of the slot for preventing free rotation of the bolt When nudged by an animal and frictionally retaining the free end of the inner handle adjacent 4, the door frame in a position substantially inaccessible to an animal References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 948,119 Wettig Feb. 1, 1910 1,538,965 Allen May 26, 1925 2,020,188 Johnson Nov. 5, 1935 2,120,606 Fournier June 14, 1938 2,529,009 Foss Nov. 7, 1950 

